The good news about the number of Scots in work is tempered by concern over falling wages and conditions and the extent to which people are able to obtain sufficient work, or work that is secure.
A rise of 9,000 people in employment is plainly to be welcomed, as is a fall in the unemployment figures, with just 6.4 per cent of Scots now jobless and 73.5 per cent in work.
Whether there has been a fall in wages at UK level - the first for five years - is disputed, with some experts arguing a 0.2 per cent drop in pay is a statistical blip, with a growth of 0.6 per cent revealed once bonus payments are disregarded.
Even if there was growth, it was small, and STUC general secretary Grahame Smith is right to point to a pay collapse in real terms as well as drawing attention to the ongoing problem of high youth unemployment.
The difficulty for Scotland - and for many other Western economies - is how to balance improving productivity in a more competitive world while delivering a better deal for workers, who are grappling with rising domestic costs on many fronts.
There is some evidence, however, that these two goals may not be incompatible. That is the thinking that lies behind the new report on workplace relations and productivity from former minister Jim Mather.
The formerly adversarial approach between unions on one side and employers and government on the other, seen most strikingly in the 1980s, has become outdated. Unions have modernised and relations with employers are broadly more constructive, and the new industrial relations body envisaged by Mr Mather would hope to build on that.
The idea of a joint body bringing forward legislation to improve the representation of workers and develop progressive policies such as wider use of the living wage is positive. There are reasons to think good workplace relations can deliver enhanced productivity, but the commitment to such policies needs to be convincing.
Yet many employees will have their doubts and - as with developments such as zero-hours contracts - will see through policies that are sold as to their advantage, but really benefit only employers.
The review has particular significance for the Scottish Government, which has built its independence campaign on the belief that it can improve productivity in the Scottish economy. If productivity is boosted by just 0.3 percentage points a year, and 0.3 per cent more people can be brought into employment, along with an increase in the working-age population of Scotland, that would generate an additional £5 billion of annual revenues, the SNP claims.
These are big "ifs". The rate of increase in productivity is regarded as a key measure of economic prospects and so far there has been a lack of clarity from ministers on how such an increase would be delivered.
But whether the independence referendum results in a Yes or No vote, this is one of the biggest challenges facing Scotland, and the Working Together review is an important contribution to finding an answer.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article